Bulldogs go 0-12 in TCAL play, still make CCS; Acorns just miss
playoffs goal
Gilroy – Having to sit through an opposing team’s lengthy Senior Night ceremony might have irritated most teams.
But the Sobrato girls basketball team considered witnessing Gilroy’s senior send-off Thursday night an inspiration.
“I just think it was really good for the girls to see that (Gilroy) senior squad that left,” said Sobrato head coach Rodney Tabares. “They went 3-7 their sophomore year and we didn’t win a league game this year so it’s an inspiration for us.”
Now, that group of Gilroy seniors are the Tri-County Athletic League champs. The Mustangs (23-4) defeated young Sobrato, which has no seniors but five freshmen on its roster, 69-20 to finish a perfect 12-0 TCAL season.
Leading Sobrato were freshmen forwards Michelle Bradley (7 points) and Laura Billos (11 rebounds). Katherine Hussey led Gilroy with 24 points.
“(Billos) is playing fantastic,” Tabares said. “She’s really improving a lot.”
The Bulldogs (6-17) finished TCAL 0-12, but still have the Central Coast Section Division IV playoffs to look forward to. The team’s non-league record was good enough to get a shot at the postseason. Tabares will find out Sunday at the CCS seeding meeting who his squad will play in Tuesday’s first round.
“We’re hoping to play a lower seeded team so it can be a little more competitive and not a one sided game,” Tabares said. “But we’re just happy to be in the playoffs.”
Lady Acorns
“All-in-all it was a good season. The team got better over the season,” said Live Oak coach Jeff Perkins. “Our goal was to compete in every game and I think we did that. We did not achieve our goal of making the playoff, which was disappointing.”
The Acorns (10-15, 4-8 TCAL) defeated the Bulldogs (7-15, 0-12) on Tuesday, 62-27, and then fell to Salinas in their last TCAL game on Thursday, 46-41, in Salinas.
Megan Gulla led Live Oak on Tuesday with a double-double, scoring 17 points and pulling in 10 rebounds. Mattie Borges also recorded a double-double for the Acorns with 14 points and 13 rebounds against Sobrato.
Live Oak will lose six seniors to graduation in the Spring, three of whom are starters.
“All six contributed over the season. We’re going to miss all of them,” said Perkins looking ahead to next season. “Every year you get a new group. I think we’ll have a good year next year. We have some girls coming back and some girls will be moving up from the JV team. I’m excited about the prospects for next year.”
Borges and Gulla led Live Oak in scoring this season. Borges averaged 9.8 points per game while Gulla averaged 9 points.
